Freiburg look well-poised to book their spot in the Europa League semi-finals, after securing a 3-0 win against Celta Vigo in the first leg thanks to goals from Vincenzo Grifo, Jan-Niklas Beste, and Matthias Ginter.

Julian Schuster’s men looked strong going forward, and seven of their 13 shots in total hit the target. Freiburg are not the type of side to sit back and try to defend their lead - they prefer to be progressive, which could make for an entertaining second leg. 

It’s a mammoth task at hand for Celta Vigo here, but they won’t be giving up just yet, especially when considering they will have the home crowd behind them. The Sky Blues will have to throw the kitchen sink at Freiburg here right from the outset, and they will be encouraged by the fact that the German side have only won two of their last eleven away matches.

Shakhtar secured a 3-0 win over AZ Alkmaar in the first leg, with all three goals coming in the second half after a clinical display from Pedrinho and Alisson Santana. Despite the scoreline suggesting otherwise, it was quite a cagey and even affair - Shakhtar were fortunate to score three times from just 0.71 xG. 

However, the second leg looks set to open up a bit more, as AZ will need to be front-footed in their approach to cut the deficit. The Dutch side have generally performed better on home turf this campaign, and their games have been quite entertaining.

AZ have scored 34 goals in 15 Eredivisie matches at the AFAS Stadium this season, but they have also conceded 21 goals in that period. Shakhtar have shown how devastatingly efficient they can be in the final third, and they are unlikely to sit in a low block here, so BTTS becomes a target. 

Strasbourg were unfortunate to leave the MEWA Arena with a 2-0 defeat in the first leg against Mainz, which puts them up against it on Thursday night. That was Strasbourg’s first defeat in the Conference League this season, highlighting how strong they have competed so far, and the French side will hope to get back on track here. 

Strasbourg have been much better on home turf this campaign, and they will relish a return to the La Meinau Stadium here. They have won eight of their 14 matches at home in Ligue 1, with 24 goals scored and just ten conceded. 

As evidenced in the first leg, Mainz are happy to sit back once they have the lead, so they are likely to go with quite pragmatic tactics midweek. Losing by one goal will suffice for them to progress to the semi-finals, which means Strasbourg should dominate. 

Bologna have only lost two of their 13 matches in the Europa League this season, and both of those defeats have come at the hands of Aston Villa.

The first ended 1-0 in the league phase back in September, before Unai Emery's side went to the Renato Dall'Ara Stadium last week and secured a commanding 3-1 victory to put them in an excellent position heading into the second leg. It was a clinical display from Villa, who had just 42% possession, but they were efficient on the break and able to carve through the hosts. 

Bologna will have to be front-footed to have any chance of mounting a comeback, but that should play directly into Villa's hands - Emery's troops are so effective at exploiting space in midfield, which should open up as Bologna commit bodies forward. Ollie Watkins bagged a brace in the first leg, and he will hope to add to his European tally on Thursday night.